18 Journal New York Entomological Society. [Voi.x. 



over another season it became plain that these were the adults of last 

 year's larvre. 



Adults. — -These are grayish beetles from one-half to five-eighths of 

 an inch long. The male is the smaller and has longer antennae. The 

 antennre of the female are only slightly longer than the body while 

 those of the male are considerably longer. The wing covers are 

 marked with irregularly roundish, red spots. The middle third (ap- 

 proximately) of each wing cover is rather densely clothed with gray 

 hairs which give this part a distinctly grayish appearance. The proxi- 

 mal (especially) and the distal thirds are less densely clothed, hence 

 darker in color. The thorax is light gray l)ut the vertex of head and 

 face are covered with reddish hairs. 



Habits of AJults. — It is evident from continued observation that 

 these beetles almost invariably work in ])airs. Mr. Brodie says : 

 ''The result of further observations keeps me convinced that they 

 work in pairs. The male is the smaller, and the fact that I frequently 

 find them copulating ])roves they are in ])airs. If the male is not in 

 (■om])any with the female he is not far away. I invariably find him at 

 the point or base of the branch the female is sawing. She takes fre- 

 (juent intervals of rest and then they are together and frequently while 

 the female is at work the male is there but in no sense helping or in- 

 terfering in the work. I have found solitary females working but it 

 was the exception. " The female does all the work. After she selects 

 a branch, she stands on it head downward and clasps it firmly with 

 the fore legs. The manner of cutting is described by Mr. Brodie as 

 follows : "In starting work, a [jatch the desired width of cut is cleaned 

 and the bark eaten. Then the powerfiil mandibles are brought to 

 work on the wood. A cut is first made at the top, then the head 

 moves gently down to the bottom, where a corresponding cut is made ; 

 then working from the bottom cut, the wood fiber is raised and as the 

 piece was cut free to start with at the top it is already detached when 

 the pice is torn loose to the top cut. 'I'hen another cut is made at 

 the top ; then at the bottom, and so on till the insect reaches in as 

 far as it can con\eniently. It then moves to either side of this cut, 

 eats off another strip of bark and goes to work on the wood as before. ' ' 



Strange to say the cutting in all actually observed cases is done be- 

 fore the eggs are laid. Sometimes enough wood is left to support the 

 branch but often it falls over before the eggs are dej)Osited. This cut- 

 ting off of the branch is evidently to prevent growth from crushing 



